RE: :what is the meaning of "ad hoc query"?

Henry,

Thanks for the excellent material.

Two additional questions:

1. so, the implication is the Normans were a cultural "bridge" between french and english due to their presence in both countries?

(this would appear to be supported by the material at the following outstanding web page: http://exile.ne.mediaone.net/lucas/EME.html , see excerpts below.)

2) I have a vague recollection of reading that vikings were from what is now Denmark. What is the historical relationship (if any) between Danish and Norwegian influences in france and england? (I've heard norwegians claim that they were somewhat unpleasantly colonized by swedes, but I think that hapened much later than the norman occupations.)

regards,
ep

---
http://exile.ne.mediaone.net/lucas/EME.html

excerpts:
Early Modern English and the Scientific Revolution.
by Robert Bruen
Harvard University
January 1996

...

The historical periods of English are roughly 
[]
[] Old: 450-1100, 
[] Middle: 1100-1500 and 
[] Modern: 1500-present. 
[]
[]These dates are really convenient reference points. No one started 
speaking Modern English on January 1, 1500 while stopping Middle 
English speech. The dates are identified by several criteria, 
including grammar and vocabulary. The interesting position in which 
find ourselves is that if we were transported back in time to about 
1500, we would be able to read books and converse with the people of 
the time, albeit with some difficulty. That is a leap of almost 500 
years. However, if someone of the 1500 were transported back to 1000, 
the same 500 years, he would not be able to do the same, because the 
language had changed so dramatically. Furthermore, if someone from 
1500 were transported back to even 1300, he would experience 
significant difficulty in understanding the people who lived then 
because of the changes that occurred between 1300 and 1400.  

My interest is in the beginning of the Modern period, especially the 
Early Modern period, because it parallels the time frame of the 
Scientific Revolution, roughly 1500 to 1700. The English language 
underwent significant changes in structure and vocabulary that 
equaled the changes in science. I do not believe it is a coincidence. 
Language capability is part of our brain, as is mathematical symbol 
manipulation. To see a surge in both areas at the same time is 
important. There are many features of this coincidence including 
publications, the use of English instead of Latin and the growth of 
vernacular English to support the expression of the new intellectual 
expression.  

The Scientific Revolution is identified as the beginning of modern 
science in the early 17th century. The beginning and end points are 
still the subject of debate, but the events of the first few decades 
of the 17th century are identifiable and remarkable. While the causes 
of the revolution may be a topic of discussion the consequences are 
not, for the resulting changes in civilization have been dramatic.  

During the same period as English was maturing, the use of Latin was 
diminishing. Latin was not only being replaced by the vernacular, but 
the vernacular was becoming more sophisticated. Latin was not growing 
in a linguistic sense anymore. It was not just representative of the 
past, it was simply not capable of supporting new literary work as 
well as the new science. During this period one finds a growing 
number of books written in the vernacular and a diminishing number 
written in Latin.  

   Early Modern English

When the [***]Norman Duke William[***] subjugated England in 1066, 
[]
[***]French was imposed on the citizens[***]
[]
through official use in governmental, judicial and military affairs. 
English did not begin to regain its position until 1362 when 
Parliament declared that since French was no longer understood by 
most people, English would be the official language once again. There 
had been a [***]gradual deterioration of French[***] for a very long 
time, as evidenced by many examples such as King Edward (1239-1307) 
the first king to choose English instead of French as his main 
language.[Stevenson p.152] During the Black Plague of 1350 so many 
English speaking artisans and craftsmen died, that those who survived 
were in great demand. This increased demand permitted their English 
to be viewed as somewhat more respectable.  

There are several important events before 1500 that when listed 
together show a series of steps in the [***]struggle for English 
language supremacy[***]. These steps are mainly governmental, legal 
and official events that pushed English usage. In 1356 The Sheriff's 
Court in London and Middlesex were conducted in English for the first 
time. When Parliament opened in 1362 the Statute of Pleading was 
issued declaring English as a language of the courts as well as of 
Parliament, but it was not until 1413 that English became the 
official language of the courts everywhere. Thirteen years later in 
1423, Parliament records start being written in English. 1400 marks 
date that English is used in writing wills, a seemingly small step, 
but one that impacted many people and began a legacy of record 
keeping in English. In 1450 English became the language used in 
writing town laws and finally 1489 saw all statutes written in 
English. But it was not until 1649 that English became the language 
of legal documents in place of Latin.[Baugh p.176]  

The formal rules intended to keep the use of French in official 
capacities were not enough to combat the effects of the Black Death 
and the Hundred Years War between France and England, which both 
contributed greatly to the rise in English and fall of French. By the 
fourteenth century, English was again known by most people, although 
French was not forgotten, and the people who spoke French were 
generally bilingual.[Baugh p.147] The Statute of Pleading made it law 
that English and not French would be used in the courts. However, it 
needs to be emphasized that at the end of this statement, it says 
that after the pleadings, debates, etc. in English were finished, 
they should be entered and enrolled in Latin. English became the 
official language of the court in 1413, but French was permitted 
until the eighteenth century.[Baugh p.176]  

...

   The Decline of Latin

The decline of Latin had many aspects, but it is certainly notable 
that the Puritans contributed because of their association of Latin 
with Roman Catholicism.[Gorlach p.39 Merton may have been more 
correct than he thought when he linked the Puritans with the 
Scientific Revolution. English was used generally in public schools 
starting in 1385, but the universities of Cambridge and Oxford held 
out until the reforms of the 1850s.  

Latin had been the source language for the great works of past 
scholarship, so it was only natural that medieval scholars would 
learn it in order to read the works. The extension of reading into 
writing, lecturing and conversing was probably quite easy. The 
European vernaculars had not quite come into their own, with those 
that were advancing still looked down upon even by the people who 
spoke them. There was a bit of snobbery involved, since educated and 
polite people used Latin. The continuation of Latin in universities 
was merely the continuation of tradition. Universities seem to like 
tradition, so real energy is required to change the tradition, not to 
keep it. With the exception of the Catholic church, they were really 
the last segment of society to give up Latin as a primary language, 
and not without a struggle of great proportions. Today we still see 
the remnants of the struggle with the constant debate over the role 
of the Classics, the importance of the liberal arts, and the place of 
the core curriculum in education.  

Latin was used in the studia generalia before they became 
universities, so usage had been well established. There were still 
some problems, however, when it came to 
[]
[***]enforcing the use among the students[***]. 
[]
At Oxford in 1284 there was dissension between the Warden and the 
Scholars because the rules of Latin conversation were habitually 
broken.[Maxwell p.80] This kind of activity resulted in the formal 
establishment of rules that required Latin to be used. The Oxford 
Statute of 1292 established that Latin was the language for ordinary 
conversation; furthermore, the practice of reading aloud at meals was 
confirmed.[Maxwell p.83] If one broke the rule of Latin at Oxford, he 
was sent to a separate table at meals and if continued, was 
eventually expelled.[Maxwell p.86] The century of 1200-1300 was not 
only the real formalization of the universities in England, but the 
formalization of the use of Latin. The rules were set down for all to 
see with consequences for those who transgressed the rules.  

...

The [***]first work[***] of philosophy in original English was 1605, 
by Francis Bacon, The Advancement of Learning. He was well aware that 
the curriculum of the humanities was outmoded because it was based on 
Latin. He also could see the future was in science, technology and 
the vernacular.[Bowen v3 p.72] During the 1690s the well known 
[***]English philosopher John Locke[***] published several works, in 
English, that espoused his views of education. An important part of 
this was his belief that English be taught and used. He was not 
against Latin and Greek, that was not yet acceptable, but he did see 
English as being the primary vehicle of learning.[Boyd p.276]  

...

   Conclusion

The connection between the mind and language in the individual is 
well known, as the same individual's ability in mathematical symbol 
manipulation. High school students who wish to attend college take 
national, standardized tests in these two areas, as do college 
students who wish to attend graduate school. The validity and 
reliability of these "aptitude'' tests may be questioned for a number 
of reasons, but in general they provide a good indicator of future 
success. 
...

I suggest that England passed through a period in which general 
thinking skills improved, not for everyone of course, but for enough 
to produce the Scientific Revolution. The first evidence is the 
dramatic increase in the complexity and usefulness of the English, 
followed by the increase in mathematical and scientific capability.  

...

... It should be elementary to see that both language and mathematics 
ability are fairly deep level characteristics of the human brain (or 
mind) and that improvements in ability at deep levels will have 
positive improvements in the world outside of our minds. It is also 
reasonably easy to accept that over the course of human history, 
different civilizations have reached different levels of achievement. 
 
...

---end---


On 16 Nov 2000, at 18:15, Henry Poras scribbled with cogency:

Date sent:      	Thu, 16 Nov 2000 18:15:21 -0800
To:             	Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L <ORACLE-L_at_fatcity.com>
From:           	Henry Poras <Henry.Poras_at_ctp.com>
Subject:        	RE: :what is the meaning of "ad hoc query"?



> Actually yes. Just a short quote from a really good book, "WORDS" by Victor

> Stevenson

> 

> "While this carefree culture was evolving in the south, the feeble

> successors of Charlemagne had to face the constant threat of raids by the

> formidable Norsemen. Charles the Simple (893-923) decided that the only

> solution was to offer the Viking chief Rollo a dukedom and allow his

> followers to settle there. Norsemen became Normans, and within the space of

> the tenth century learned to speak French as well as any Frank. 

> 	The Vikings were not in the habit of taking their wives along with

> them. The second generation of Normans mostly had French-speaking mothers

...



> -----Original Message-----

> Sent: Thursday, November 16, 2000 6:16 PM

> To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L

> 

> 

> The Normans were from Normandy, which eventually became part of France, and